Professional Documents
Culture Documents
The Political System of Saudi Arabia PDF
The Political System of Saudi Arabia PDF
of Saudi Arabia
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Preface ............................................................................................................................................. 7
Prelude ............................................................................................................................................ 11
5
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Preface
9
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Prelude
Chapter (1)
1- Ensuring justice
God Almighty says: “We sent aforetime Our apostles
with clear signs and sent down with them the Book and
the balance (of right and wrong), that men may stand forth
in justice.” (57:25).
This entails that the ultimate objective of the prophets is
to stand firm for justice.
4- Execution of verdicts
That is to implement verdicts according to the shari’ah
law, without any alteration or negligence.
18
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Chapter (2)
21
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Chapter (3)
2- Man’s responsibility
If God has created this universe and sent man as His
vicegerent on earth, then there is, no doubt, a great wisdom
behind this, as God, would not create anything in mere
jest.
This vicegerent should then be responsible and
23
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
2- Shoura (Consultation)
Consultation is the exchange and review of views, as
26
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
5- State responsibility
Responsibility is a trust. It is the trait of being
answerable and being responsible for one’s conduct.
The state, represented by its officials, is responsible for
its duties and behaviors. Any good work or behavior is to
be appreciated and any wrongdoing must be corrected and
be something that the state is liable for.
As for accountability, then this is something that can
take place in this life as well as in the Hereafter.
28
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Governance.
Article (8) states: “The rule in the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia is based on the premise of justice, consultation,
and equity, in accordance with the Islamic shari’ah.”
While Article (6) states: “Citizens shall pledge
allegiance to the King in accordance with the Holy Qur’an
and the Sunnah (tradition of the Prophet), in submission
and obedience, in times of ease and difficulty, fortune and
adversity.”
It is true that these foundations can be applied in
different forms. Shoura, for instance, can be applied in
several modes and can be realized without establishing
shoura councils. This can be made through seeking the
advice of learned elders and ulama (Muslim scholars)
in problematic and ambiguous matters, similar to what
happened during the era of the righteous caliphs. It can
also, of course, be applied by establishing shoura councils
that have binding or non-binding decisions.
These foundations with their various applications are
rather like a multi-story building whose foundations and
pillars are built and whose architect or owner then begins
to make changes in the distribution of its rooms, aisles,
doors, windows and decor. These cosmetic changes can
be made whilst retaining the fundamental structure.
The moral foundations (such as integrity, sincerity,
counsel, mercy, mutual respect and reciprocal trust), are
noble values and individuals, communities and states are
expected to differ in their application of these. Indeed,
few would be able to apply these values in totality, so it
36
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
37
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Chapter (4)
41
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Chapter (5)
a- Regular courts
b- Summary courts
c- Personal affairs courts
d- Commercial courts
e- Labor courts
- Suggestion
- Discussion
- Ratification
- Issuance
As the Shoura Council suggests, discusses and votes,
it performs three of the mentioned stages. It is, therefore,
feasible to consider the Shoura Council a regulatory
authority and as such the authority consists of both the
Council of Ministers and the Shoura Council.
55
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Chapter (6)
Division of Rights
The law divides rights into different categories. We will
refer to one well known category:
civil and political rights:
Civil rights are the protections and privileges ofpersonal
power given to all citizens by law. They are of two types:
a- General rights: Which are what man enjoys by
nature.
b- Private rights: Which are what an individual enjoys
in his relations with others, and they are of two types:
the rights and duties of the state and then the rights and
duties of people.
2- Provision of Education:
This is according to article (30) which reads: “The State
shall provide public education, and shall be committed to
combating illiteracy.”
It is the right and even a duty of every citizen to get an
education. Thus, general education is obligatory and free
of charge.
This is what Islam requires from the individual and the
state.
In the Holy Qur’an, it is stated: “Say: ‘Are those who
know equal to those who do not know?’ Only they will
66
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
These jobs are therefore not the right of people, but are
rather assigned to those qualified and thus deserving of
them.
The second category consists of standard posts that one
must apply for and compete with others in order to gain.
The Saudi Civil Service Law divides these posts into
four groups, with respect to their ranks:
77
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Chapter (7)
79
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Chapter (8)
- Judicial authority
- Administrative bodies
85
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Chapter (9)
Freedoms
1- Freedom of Expression
2- Political Opposition:
This can be manifested in several ways, the most
important of which are:
Second: Demonstrations
These are organized popular marches to show people’s
support or opposition for particular matters and is an
organized illustration of expression that has been adopted
by western democracies as a political right.
What has been mentioned in terms of criticism of
multiparty systems can also be said about demonstrations,
as they tend to cause chaos and disturbance in public life.
However, such demonstrations can be rendered
meaningless if religious and political awareness among
the public increases and leadership is assumed by shrewd
and insightful men who do not tolerate corruption and
chaos and, therefore, shun those who seek to fulfill their
own personal interests.
We believe that this is a realistic objective that is not
difficult to achieve.
93
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Chapter (10)
Women
When it comes to the issue of women, there is always
a plethora of opinions; be it from scientists, philosophers,
jurists, legislators and politicians, some are critical, others
supportive and others neutral.
It is not uncommon for this topic to be the cause of
heated discussion and frivolous debate, so we will focus
on the subject solely from a political viewpoint, so as to
preclude digression.
However, she may work outside her home for one of the
following two reasons:
The first: If she or her family is in need for her to
do so.
The second: If the community is in need of her
experience and efforts.
Hence, a number of conditions should be met. The most
important of which are:
1- Her work should not result in any type of loss to her
children or family, as their interests take precedence.
2- She should be dressed in hijab and not expose her
beauty, as failure to do so may constitute a provocation of
corruption.
3- Her work should suit her physical structure and
personality and not be exhausting or a cause of defect to
her personality or dignity.
4- She should take all necessary precautions in
maintaining ideal values and morals and refrain from
all that which would lead to the damage of these values
such as intermingling with non-related men, laxity in
conversation, and traveling without a legal guardian.
Based on these conditions, all types of work that do
not suit the nature of women such as military service,
tough menial work, jobs with major responsibilities such
as the presidency or premiership of a state, the judiciary
and ministerial posts, are exempted from those posts that
could be assumed by women.
The evidence for this is that found in the incident of
a delegation from Persia coming to Prophet Muhammad,
97
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
98
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Conclusion
Comparison:
First: Similarities
Second: Differences
108
The Political System
of Saudi Arabia
Endnotes
of Democracy), P.22.
32. Al-Jabri. Addimogratiya wa huquq alinsan, ibid, P.14.
33. Abdul Hameed Mutwali. Alqanon addastouri wal anzima
assiyasiya (Constitutinal Law and Political Systems), P. 108.
34. Almujam alfalsafi (Pholosophical Dictionay), 1/570.
35. Alqanon addastouri wal anzima assiyasiya, P. 143, ibid.
36. Ibrahim Darweesh & Bakr Al-Amry. Dirasat alhakoomat
almoqarana (Comparative Governments Studies), P. 105.
111